BERLIN (Reuters) - U.S. tariffs on steel and aluminium imports would not dampen German exports if an exemption granted to the European Union expires on May 1 without a permanent solution, Germany’s leading economic institutes said on Thursday.

FILE PHOTO: Rolls of wire are seen at the plant of German steel company Arcelor Mittal in Duisburg April 19, 2013. REUTERS/Ina Fassbender

But they warned in a report that an escalation of a trade dispute between major economic blocs would have a big impact on German exports and the economy, which they expect to grow by 2.2 percent this year and by 2.0 percent in 2019.

The institutes also said an upswing in Europe’s largest economy was losing momentum.